We Shall Rise Again
by MissDodo1217
Summary: Caulil is a female Saiyan whose small tribe was taken captive just before the destruction of Planet Vegeta. Since she was a little girl, she has been a gladiator on Planet Orrack fighting for survival. But times are about to change quickly for the Saiyaness, and the sweet smell of revolution is in the air. Story begins during the Frieza/Namek saga.
1. Don't die

Hero.

By definition a hero is a person who, in the face of danger, stands his ground, defends those who cannot defend themselves, and sacrifices his own selfish desires for the greater good. The very word carries a deep meaning, and is prominent in the stories passed down by generations of Saiyans. The word inspired young Saiyans to become the warriors they are known to be, filling them with hope, determination and a lust for strength. They believed a hero would rise. But on _that day_ , there was no hero. There was nobody to answer their cries for help. Their "hero", their King, had abandoned them.

In the age of 737, Lord Frieza and his empire was not a force to be reckoned with. His name was known throughout the universe, and was more than enough to leave the mightiest of warriors shaking in their boots. If anybody did not happen to know his name, then they were, undoubtedly, a fool. Lord Frieza prided himself on his control of a vast number of planets, many of which supported the twisted tyrant whether it was genuine support or out of pure fear. The Saiyan race began as loyal supporters of the dictator, seeking power and wealth themselves. However, it wasn't long before Frieza began to recognize their strength as warriors, and secretly feared that he may be overthrown. He grew to despise the "monkeys", as he lovingly described the warriors, and began to suppress the Saiyans, progressively treating them more and more like lowly dogs. It wasn't long before it was discovered that another race shared his ideas on the Saiyans. The Orrackians were also a proud race, and were well known for their intellect and battle strategies. They were also known for their home planet's gladiator games and the Grand Arena, and this had piqued Frieza's interested when an Orrackian ambassador approached him with a proposition. It was quite simple really. It was obvious that the Saiyans were skilled in battle, but it was also painfully obvious that many of the monkeys were beginning to harbor intentions of rebelling against his lordship. Yes, exterminating them immediately would solve all problems, but then a major opportunity in Lord Frieza's favor would be missed. Perhaps the Saiyans could be put to better use. Their inclusion in the gladiator games would not only serve as a major monetary gain to support Frieza and the Planet Trade Organization, but it would also control a major threat to his seat in power. The ambassador's case was quite convincing, and Frieza quickly gave his approval.

"My, what an interesting idea. Very well then, have your forces do as they please. I must say, I'm quite excited to see what will become of this."

Not long after, a sector of planet Vegeta was attacked. Despite their best efforts, and despite their fastest warriors racing off to seek help from King Vegeta and the Saiyan elite, the tribe of Saiyans was captured. With their will to resist destroyed along with their hope for aid, they were taken from their home planet and delivered to the planet Orrack as prisoners. Many Saiyans became tools of entertainment as gladiators and were forced to fight and kill day after day inside the arena just to survive, even if it meant killing each other. Years had passed since then, and the faded memories of their lives on Planet Vegeta seemed like mere dreams.

Now, it was almost time for the next battle. The cheering from the surface echoed down below the arena, a sure sign that the carnage from the previous battle had been cleaned away. Did the last warrior see victory? Or did he meet his end? Their numbers had been on a steady decline the past few weeks, just where were they finding these new beasts? Where ever they were from, they were much stronger than the local monsters.

"Caulil?"

The female Saiyan's brows furrowed together, and slowly her eyes opened. She stared up at the other female from where she laid on the ground, and took a moment to collect her thoughts before rubbing her face. "Is it that time already?" she mumbled.

"It is," the other Saiyan replied, and took a step back as Caulil sat up. The woman's tail twitched behind her as she place a hand on her hip, and her head turned to the entrance of the small room. "The stands are full today, I'm sure they're expecting a good show from you," the woman stated, then smiled half-heartedly. "It has been a little over a week since your last appearance."

"Parsley."

"Hm?"

"Did he make it? Did he win?"

Parsley, as the woman was named, looked down at her, and then sighed. "He did, but at what cost?" she muttered and brought her hands up in a shrug. "He has multiple broken bones, and possibly some internal bleeding. If he makes it through on his own, but can no longer fight, then they'll just kill him anyways, won't they?" Caulil frowned, but had to agree. Parsley was right. If they couldn't fight, then what purpose did a Saiyan serve? "But, well, that's never gonna happen to you!" Parsley exclaimed and offered a hand to help the warrior to her feet. "You're one of the strongest ones here! They can't touch you, no way!"

Caulil raised an eyebrow at the woman, and then scoffed as she took the helping hand. "You really know how to hype someone up, don't ya?" she mused as she pulled herself up.

"Hehe," Parsley chuckled softly, and then motioned for Caulil to follow her. She led the way out of the small room and into the underground hall where they weaved around groups of other Saiyans, all weary and worn from work and battle. She managed to catch some mumbled words exchanged by a few of them, whispering about how she might fare against the next opponent. Were they doubting her? Possibly. But it was unlikely for her to lose. She's been fighting and surviving for almost twenty years now. There's no way she would lose now.

They had just reached the staircase that would take them up to the arena when Caulil heard her name being called in a low, gravelly voice. She stopped and turned, seeing a man approaching her as he clutched something wrapped in a cloth in his hand. Her eyes went to the cloth first, then to his scarred face. "You aren't thinking of going in without these, are you little lady?"

"Never," Caulil mused and took the package he held. She unwrapped it, revealing her two curved trench knives. These always came in handy, considering the braces they were forced to wear repressed their energy. Blasting and flying were a no-go in the arena. They had to fight using only their brute strength. "You did a good job this time, Cress. I don't see a speck of blood anywhere!"

"What? What do you mean, 'this time'? I always make sure those knives of yours are in top shape!" Cress grumbled and crossed his arms over his broad chest.

"I'm kidding, don't get your tail in a knot," Caulil snickered and clenched a knife in each hand. Her tail wrapped tightly around her waist as she looked up the stairs, and then placed a foot on the first step. "Be sure to watch me, okay?" she said and looked over her shoulder at the others.

"We always will, there's no doubt about that," Cress told her with a quick nod of his head.

"Don't die on us, okay?" Parsley said with her hands on her hips and her tail swishing nervously behind her. Caulil grinned, then looked back up the stairs. She took in a breath and started climbing, the area around her gradually growing brighter. At the top of the staircase was a gated entry way, and she gripped the knives tighter. As the announcer began to speak, the gate began to rise from the ground.

"It's time to begin the next round!"

The noise of the crowd surrounded Caulil as she stepped into the arena, and for a brief moment she was overwhelmed by a feeling of lightheadedness. Even with her years of experience, this was a moment she would never actually get used to. She held her breath and looked to the stands. Every seat was filled, and there were more people standing in the isles. Did nobody have anything better to do today? Was this honestly the only thing worthy of their time, watching them battle their way into exhaustion? Her dark eyes skimmed over different faces until she reached the spectator's box where the royal family of Orrack sat. Perched high in his safe little nest, the King of Orrack never missed a second of the bloodshed. At one side of him was the Queen, and to the other side sat the young prince who was quite literally on the edge of his seat. The prince grinned broadly, and then motioned for a man standing behind them to come forward. Caulil watched as they spoke, and her eyes shifted up to the Orrackian man. Well, if it wasn't Commander Zennon himself! She wasn't at all surprised by his presence at the arena. Commander Zennon was His Majesty's personal bodyguard, a military genius, and had been a major component in the Saiyan's enslavement nearly twenty years ago. If it weren't for him, then it was possible that they could have fended off the raid and remained on their home planet in peace. Of course, if that had happened, then it was more than likely that they would have perished with the rest of Planet Vegeta when it was suddenly destroy. News travelled fast among Lord Frieza's expansive empire, and whispers of their home planet's destructions had reached the Saiyans' ears after they had settled into their life in servitude on their new home. Some had once said that they had been quite lucky to escape their demise, but in the end it was nothing but a lose-lose situation.

When Caulil's eyes met with the Commander's, she scowled in response to his smirk. Her desire to drag his smug face through the dirt had nearly distracted her from the rising gate on the opposite end of the arena, and the sound of a low growl gained her full attention. The noise of the surrounding audience dulled as all eyes were glued to the gate. Everything was so quiet you could hear the wind blow… and her heart raced.

All of a sudden, two enormous beasts came charging towards her from the darkness. She braced herself as one hit her head on and the second veered to the right, and Caulil felt her center of gravity shift as she was lifted and thrown into the air. The wind was knocked out of her, and it took a couple seconds to regain her senses. The Saiyaness twisted her body mid-flight as she fell to the ground, and grunted as she landed. "Ugh, damn it…" she grumbled and looked up at the two monsters as the audience in the stands roared in excitement. The one who had charged her slowed to a trot and turned around, pushing the second one aside as they slowly moved back towards her. They were massive in size, two bison-like creatures with long tails and a pair of huge horns protruding from the sides of their faces. Thick, dark fur covered the majority of their bodies except their latter half which was covered by a thin coat of fur and broad markings characteristic of their species. It appeared that their only instinct was to charge and kill, but that wasn't different from any other opponent she had faced. Still, she had to be cautious.

Caulil slowly stood up, her grip still tight around her knives. She had to take at least one of these things down, but how? Sure, they were strong, but they didn't seem to smart. Her right foot inched forward as she watched the beast, and it mimicked her by stamping a foot. "Going to charge again?" She murmured with a grin. "Come at me." Instead of propelling forward, Caulil turned on her foot and ran the opposite way. And, just as she suspected, the beast followed suit. The Saiyaness moved quickly, looking back to ensure that it was still following. "Good boy," she breathed out, and looked ahead at the wall of the arena. "Keep it comin'!" Caulil drew closer to the wall before she took one step up the wall, then another. As she pushed off the wall and bent backwards in a flip, the beast pursuing her rammed into the wall and shook the stands just above. Frightened screams soon turned to cheers of excitement as gravity took control and the Saiyan struck from above. She landed on the beast's back, straddled it, and stabbed the twin blades into the side of its neck for better grip. Who knew her plan could turn out so perfectly?

But she couldn't celebrate just yet. There was still life inside this thing, and it wasn't going down without a fight. "Nngh!" she growled and pushed the blades deeper as the animal reared back and head butted the wall once more. "I can't let go…" she told herself as the animal jerked to the side and ran to the other end of the arena. It hit another wall, and Caulil felt her body lift off of the back of the beast just briefly before she regained control. It tried to shake her off, and Caulil lowered onto its body and held tightly before it slowed down and began to charge again. How could it keep going for this long? Sure, the crowd was enjoying the ride, but she couldn't hold on forever! "Die already!" Caulil yelled, and drew one of the blades from its flesh. She brought her arm down again and again, stabbing the beast repeatedly. But it was still as if she was barely doing any damage! The Saiyaness was forced to brace herself again as the creature started to buck, desperate to throw her off. "Ah! Son of a-!" she snapped as a hand slipped. She held on with only one hand for a few seconds before she was able to grab on again. "That's it!" she snapped and pulled both of the blades from the beast's neck as it slowed down. After switching the knives from one hand to the other, Caulil leaned over and wrapped her arm around its neck, thrusted the blades into its throat and pulled. The beast roared and tried to run as its neck was sliced open, although it didn't get too far. The beast began to slow down to a stagger, Caulil still on its back. It suddenly collapsed, and she rolled off as the crowd went wild. She did it! She took it down! Caulil panted and got to her knees, then pushed herself up. "Ugh…" she huffed and wiped the sweat from her brow with a bloody arm. Her arm dropped to her side and she panted a few more times before glancing over to the second beast, which was pacing back and forth nearby. One down, one to go.


	2. Broken, but not beaten

"Look, look, look!" Parsley said excitedly as she reached up to Cress's arm and patted it quickly. "She got it! She did it!"

Both the female and male Saiyans stood behind the gate with a few others as they watched the match ensue, each of them not wanting to miss a second. Parsley's tail swished back and forth behind her in excitement, and her hand gripped his arm. "Did you see?!"

"Yes, I saw it Parsley," Cress grumbled in slight annoyance of the young woman's enthusiasm. He hadn't moved an inch since the match started, or rather, he was unable to move. He too couldn't help but be amazed by his student's skills in the arena. Caulil had long since surpassed him when it came to fighting, but there was always room for improvement. Caulil took hard hit to the chest in the very beginning of the match, there was no doubt she would be feeling that sooner or later. She really needed to work on anticipating her opponents and not underestimating them. "She's doin' good," He mused and crossed his arms. "Of course, a lot of her success is due to MY handiwork on her weapons. Never fails…" He boasted, but his tail twitched nervously behind him. _'It's a good thing I remembered to sharpen them this time,'_ He thought. _'They probably wouldn't have been able to cut through that thing's neck if I hadn't.'_ Cress was considered their "weapons expert", but he too was still learning even at his age.

"You're so full of yourself," Parsley huffed, then wrapped her hands around the bars of the gate. "Take him down, Caulil!" The female yelled. She grinned as she saw the Saiyaness turn to look back at her, but it soon fell and she gasped as Caulil was tail-swept to the side during her brief moment of distraction. "Woops." Parsley bit her lower lip gripped the bars tighter. "I'm sorry Caulil!"

"Nice," Cress sighed and covered his face with a hand.

Caulil's body rolled along the ground after being struck, and finally it came to a stop. She gagged and coughed as she rolled onto her stomach, and then let out a groan as she pushed herself up to her hands and knees. What the hell was Parsley thinking, yelling out like that! "She's gonna get it, oof, when I come back," she growled and picked herself up. "Nngh!" Caulil dropped a knife and put her hand to her chest. There was a throbbing pain within, and she had no doubt that something was at least fractured, if not broken. "That can't be good," she mumbled and turned to face the beast again. "I gotta end this fast." She stood a bit straighter and whistled to the creature, earning its attention once more. "Bring it on, big boy," she taunted, and the beast growled as if it understood her words. It charged once more but she leapt out of the way, skidding across the ground on her bare feet. Her hand clutched her chest as the other clenched the knife tightly, and she moved again as the beast turned and charged. Caulil took in a quick breath and crouched as the beast lunged at her, its wide open and teeth bared. Caulil's arm moved, swinging in front of her. She released the blade from her fingers and it flew straight into the creature's mouth, lodging itself in its throat. The creature suddenly stopped its attack and gagged, trying to rid itself of the knife. Its action's only caused it more pain, and the beast staggered around, dry heaving and desperately struggling to breathe.

Caulil stayed where she was for a moment before deeming it safe enough to move. The beast was no longer interested in her life; no, its priority now was saving its own. The woman stood slowly, trying not to put too much stress on her body as it was. She slowly made her was back to her second knife, which lay on the ground, and she picked it up. When she stood straight once more, her eyes skimmed over the audience in the stands. Different faces told of various emotions, but the air was thick with anticipation. She soon turned back around to the beast, which had collapsed onto the ground and gasped for air. She could just leave it to die slowly, but it and its partner had put up a good fight. She would make it quick as a sign of respect. After all, it was possible that it was just like her, forced to fight for its own survival. The Saiyaness returned to the beast, standing over it for a moment, watching as the massive creature neared its death slowly. This could be her someday. If she didn't fight to her fullest ability, if she let down her guard even a little more, then it was quite possible that one day she would be on the ground, writhing in pain with her life flashing before her eyes. What did that feel like, she wondered. To be completely helpless, and at the mercy of another being? Someone stronger than she was, someone with a stronger will to live than she had? Caulil furrowed her brows together as she stared at the pitiful creature, and she shook her head to rid herself of such thoughts. "I'll be quick about it," she stated and crouched down. She lined up the end of the knife with the beast's most vital spot on its throat, then placed her second hand over the blunt end. With easy, she plunged the blade into the beast's throat, hold it there as blood poured out from the wound. Just as she intended, the creature's life force left the body quickly, and the match was over. The arena was quiet when she stood, as if nobody had any idea of how to react to her win. It wasn't any sort of grandiose win that they had hoped for, but that wasn't any of her concern. While the audience wrapped their minds around the conclusion of the match, she made her way back to the gate from whence she came.

Parsley and Cress were still there, waiting for her return. They moved away once the gate began to rise, and as it did, there was finally a cheer from the audience. Finally, they realized her victory! "Tch," Caulil scoffed and stepped into the hall so that the gate may drop again.

"Caulil!" Parsley exclaimed and brought her clenched fists in front of her. "You won!"

"Heh, hehe," Caulil grinned and attempted to stand straight with her fists on her hips, but ended up groaning and doubled over once more with a hand over her chest. "Ugh…"

"You got hit hard, didn't ya?" Cress said in a condescending tone.

"It feels like a space pod landed on my chest."

"Yep. That'll do it," Cress huffed and turned around. He lowered down and his tail wrapped around his waist. "Don't strain yourself anymore, get on."

Although she wanted to refuse her mentor's offer, she didn't feel as though her body to could make it down the stairs to the underground. So she accepted, and climbed onto the larger Saiyan's back. "Sorry, Cress," She mumbled.

"I've got no problem giving you a ride, even if you are grown."

"Not that. My knife. I kinda lost it."

"Yeah. I saw that," Cress grumbled. "All of that work for nothin'."

Caulil pursed her lips together as she looked at him over his shoulder. Was he seriously mad? Well, she knew how to fix that. "It's not for nothing. That knife and your work saved my life. You did a good job!" She felt Cress's body straighten under her as his ego inflated.  
"You're damn right it did! You'd better not forget that little lady!"

The trio soon reached the bottom of the staircase, and they were greeted by a large group of other Saiyans. Men and women alike had grins on their faces, and their eyes lit up as the female gladiator was returned to them. Details of her match had spread like wildfire below the arena, and they were ready to celebrate the day's victories. "Move outta the way!" Parsley demanded. "She's injured!"

"It's not that bad, Parsley!" Caulil huffed, then sucked in a breath as the pain struck again.

"Sure it's not. I mean, that's not that reason why you nearly collapsed, right?"

"Well, it wouldn't be so bad if I hadn't got hit a _second_ time thanks to a little distraction, eh?"

Parsley's tail flicked side to side and she scrunched up her nose. "Take her in there," she said, quickly avoiding the subject. She pointed to another hall that would lead to a room commonly used to treat injuries after battle. Cress obeyed, carrying the gladiator to the room. There were three large tables in a row in the center of the room, each stained red on the table tops from past gladiators and their wounds. The walls of the room were bare dirt, although there was some evidence that they were once decorated as random sections of colored mosaic tiles remained. Against one wall were some shelves, and on those shelves were medical tools, bandages, towels, medicinal herbs and other medications. It was far from a sanitary area by any medical standards, but it was enough to allow them to take care of themselves. Cress carried her to one table and turn around, lowered his body, and allowed her to let go and sit. Caulil let out an uneven breath and put her hand to her chest once again. "Is it your chest?" Parsley questioned, and she raised an eyebrow. "You'll have to take off your armor. Can you lift your arms?" Caulil looked up at the other Saiyan for a second, then slowly tried to lift her arms. There was another surge of pain, and she sucked in a sharp breath. Parsley took note of her reaction, and she moved in front of Caulil. She aided by first removing the fur shoulder piece on her left arm, then lifted the dark red chest piece over the gladiator's head, relieving her of the obstructing armor. "Let's go ahead and get the other piece off too," She stated and reached around Caulil's mid-section. She pushed the middle of the back in until it was unclasped, and removed the olive green armor. Caulil let out a breath, and Parsley smiled slightly. "Feel better?" She asked, and the woman nodded. Caulil then pulled at the loose collar of the old, tan colored clothing she wore, and pulled it down her shoulders until it fell and gathered around her waist. Parsley drew back and clenched her fists as her friend's injury became apparent. Her whole chest was black and blue with patches of violet, and Parsley had no doubt that she had taken damage to her sternum.

"That one's gonna take a while to heal completely," Cress said from a few feet behind Parsley, and the female Saiyan moved to the shelves that held the medicine and bandages. Parsley searched through the medicine until she found a bottle and a patch. "What's that?" Cress asked.

"Some of the guards brought it down and said we could use it. They said it's supposed to like the liquid inside the healing tanks that Lord Frieza's army uses. I'll just pour some on this patch and put it on. It should soak right into your skin to speed up the healing process."

"I don't understand why they don't just give us a healing tank," Cress complained.

"I guess they just don't feel the need to spend money on such things for us," Parsley sighed. "It would be useful."

"We'll do with what we have for now," Caulil huffed and winced again from the pain.

Parsley nodded, and laid a patch on the table, then poured just enough of the liquid onto it to soak the inside. She screwed the cap on and replaced the bottle back onto the shelf, then carried the patch to Caulil. "Alright, move your hand." Caulil straightened her back and allowed the woman to press the patch against the space between her breasts, and she held it there while Parsley prepared a long bandage to help hold it in place. She began wrapping it around Caulil's body, making it tighter with each rotation.

"Why so tight?" Caulil grumbled, and Parsley glared at her briefly.

"I have to wrap you up tightly," She told her and pulled the bandage again, making the other female gasp. "Your sternum is fractured, more than likely. We don't need you moving around too much and causing it to snap." She made a good argument, and Caulil was silent the rest of her treatment. As Parsley finished up, Caulil noticed a tingling sensation on her chest, and the pain was starting to dull down. It seemed that that liquid was doing its job. "Nice, I think it's already starting to work. I'll be back in action in no time," Caulil mused and pulled her clothing back up her arms.

"Just remember we don't have a lot of that stuff," Cress told her. "So next time, how about you listen to what I've told you before and block?"

"Hey, I wasn't expecting it to hit that hard!"

"It doesn't matter! You need to watch yourself in the arena!" Parsley snapped.

"Fine!" Caulil huffed and grabbed her armor from the table. "Cress, can you look over these and fix any damage for me?"

"Sure, later on after we eat," The man replied. "I know you're hungry after that match, right?"

"Yeah, I am," Caulil said with a grin and put a hand over her stomach. She tossed the pieces of armor to the man, who barely caught the chest and abdomen pieces and used his tail to catch the fur shoulder protector. Her tail swayed behind her, and she moved to the doorway. "Fix 'em up nicely, Cress!" She said and held up a hand.

"Wha—where's she goin'?" Cress grumbled, and looked over to Parsley for an answer.

"Probably to go watch the remaining matches…" She replied and crossed her arms for a moment. Her tail flicked at her side, and she smiled. "Wait up!" she yelled before dashing out of the room. Cress was left behind, and he scowled. It was so typical of those two, leaving him behind without offering to help with anything. His scowl soon faded.

It didn't bother him much, really. They hadn't changed at all since they were children. Those two girls were inseparable.


End file.
